US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has asked the Hamas Islamist movement to accept a ceasefire proposal made by the US at a round of talks held in Doha, Qatar last week.
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| US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (left) meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on August 19. (Source: X) |
On August 20, the Times of Israel quoted the US Secretary of State as saying that he had a constructive meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on August 19, in which Israel accepted the "bridging" proposal made by the US last week in Doha.
According to the diplomat, Hamas now has a responsibility to do the same. The US Secretary of State assessed that these are complex issues and will require tough decisions from leaders.
Earlier, at a meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, the US chief diplomat said this was a “decisive moment” in ceasefire negotiations in Gaza.
He described Washington's latest diplomatic effort to reach a deal between Israel and Hamas to end the conflict as "perhaps the best and possibly last chance" to free the hostages, while asserting that the US was also doing everything to ensure there was no escalation of tensions in the region.
On the Israeli side, Prime Minister Netanyahu said he plans to send a negotiating team to Egypt this week to hold a new round of talks on a ceasefire in Gaza and a prisoner exchange.
The Israeli negotiating delegation will be led by Mossad intelligence chief David Barnea and will include Israel's Internal Security Agency chief Ronen Bar and Israel's military hostage chief Nitzan Alon.
Meanwhile, the Times of Israel reported that the head of the UK's Scottish foreign affairs department, Angus Robertson, said that the Scottish government would stop holding any meetings with Israeli officials until there was real progress towards a peace agreement in Gaza.
In another development related to Israel, according to the Times of Israel , to deal with the shortage of troops, the country's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has ordered the army to recall previously discharged reservists as part of personnel reduction measures.
The reservists called back to active duty this time are those under the exemption age, which is 40 years old for most soldiers, 45 years old for officers and 49 years old for specialists.
The Israeli military said the move came after assessing the new situation and was part of preparations to strengthen reserve forces.
Source: https://baoquocte.vn/xung-dot-o-gaza-my-yeu-cau-hamas-chap-thuan-de-xuat-ngung-ban-canh-bao-co-hoi-cuoi-cung-israel-trieu-tap-lai-quan-nhan-du-bi-283252.html
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